In 1952 my great-uncle Louis B. Mayer called Debbie Reynolds into his office at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. She was just 18, tiny, and a fresh-faced beauty bursting with talent at a studio known to have plenty of both.

He sat forward in his chair and cut straight to the point: “You’re going to star in a movie with Gene Kelly, ‘Singin’ in the Rain.’”

From Scott Eyman’s biography Lion of Hollywood: The Life and Legend of Louis B. Mayer. Pg 442

Of course, by 1952 Gene Kelly was a megastar – every actress (and probably every girl and woman around the world) wanted to star opposite him. But you couldn’t just stand there – you would need to keep up.

So Debbie Reynolds pointed out a little detail she felt was pretty important: “But I can’t dance, Mr Mayer.”